Carolina Set to Finish Season Friday Night at FIU

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina (6-10-0, 1-6-0 C-USA) finishes its season Friday night, squaring off with FIU (7-8-0, 5-2-0 C-USA) on the road in Miami. Kickoff for the conference matchup is set for 7 p.m. ET. A live stream of the match will be available through CUSA.tv.
 
The Gamecocks lead the all-time series with the Panthers 13-1-5, with a 6-0-3 record at FIU Soccer Stadium.
 
Five seniors will be making their final appearances in Garnet and Black: midfielder Peyton Ericson, striker Bjorn Gudjonsson, goalkeeper Ian McGrane, defender Andre Streete and defender Paul Quildies.

SCOUTING FIU
The Panthers are again one of the top offensive teams in C-USA, ranking third in the league in goals (27) and second in shots (215). A First Team All-American in 2017, Santiago Patino again leads the team in points (26) and goals (12). His 12 scores are second in C-USA behind only Kentucky’s J.J. Williams (14). Joris Ahlinvi ranks second on the team with 17 points (7G, 3A). Ahlivini (58) and Patino rank second and third in C-USA, respectively, in total shots. Ahlivini leads the team with 27 shots on goal, while Patino ranks second with 23 shots on target. Ahlivini also leads the team with four game-winners. Hugo Fauroux has started 10 of the team’s matches, posting a 3-7-0 record. He’s made 31 saves (.564 save percentage) and allowed 24 goals (2.32 GAA). Daniel Gagliardi is 4-1-0 in five starts, allowing 11 goals (2.11 GAA) while making 28 saves (.718 save percentage). FIU has not shutout an opponent during the 2018 season.

BUZZER BEATER 
Junior striker Luca Mayr scored the game-winning goal to knock-off No. 19 Virginia Tech, 2-1, in double overtime on the road in Blacksburg on Oct. 2. Sophomore Mitchell Myers intercepted a pass just inside midfield with time dwindling on the clock and found Mayr on the far sideline. The Steyr, Austria, native laced a shot from 30-yards out on target and found the back of the net far post with 19.4 seconds to go.

FOUR GOALS IN FOUR MINUTES
In South Carolina’s 5-0 shutout win against Wofford (Sept. 19), the Gamecocks scored four times in a 4 minute and 15 second stretch midway through the second half to break the game wide open. All five goals were scored by different players and two were unassisted.
 
It marked the most goals scored in a match by Carolina since a 5-4 win at FIU on Oct. 8, 2014. It’s also the 75th time the Gamecocks have scored five goals or more in the program’s 41 seasons of competition. The 5-0 score marked the widest margin of victory in a shutout since a 5-0 win at home against Gardner-Webb on Oct. 15, 2001.

NO. 5 IN HOME ATTENDANCE 
Through games played on Oct. 28, the Gamecocks rank fifth in the country in attendance average at 2,611 fans per game. Two of Carolina’s first three games this season currently rank in the top-20 for single-game attendance.
 
The season-opening crowd vs. No. 13 Georgetown (Aug. 24) drew 4,844 fans, the 11th largest crowd in NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer in 2018.  The Gamecocks’ annual rivalry game against Clemson (Aug. 31) drew 4,441 fans, the 16th biggest crowd. South Carolina welcomed 12,937 fans combined for its first three matches of the season (4,312 avg.).

OVARIAN CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
The South Carolina men’s soccer team supported Ovarian Cancer Awareness all month long in September by wearing teal warmup jerseys for their matches. In addition to the teal warm up jerseys, the Gamecock coaching staff and support staff wore teal polo shirts. 
 
The team is promoting awareness for this cancer and encourages women to get regular checkups. Contact your local ovarian cancer support group for more information at 888-682-7426 or visit the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition’s website at http://www.ovarian.org. Remember, NO ONE FIGHTS ALONE! 

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